1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to washing appliances and, more particularly, to a washing appliance and associated control method.
2. Description of Related Art
A dishwasher appliance typically includes a number of selectable automatic wash programs, wherein any one such wash program may be selected by the user depending on the nature of the load (i.e., a “normal” wash cycle for varying food soil levels on the dishware, a “china/crystal” wash cycle, an “economy” cycle, a “speed wash” cycle, or a “rinse and hold” cycle). In such instances, the selected wash program may adjust or include a distinct menu of a number of different parameters that affect the particular wash cycle. That is, the selected cycle may have certain “pre-wash” characteristics, rinse (post-wash) characteristics, and “main wash” characteristics, including, for example, particular durations for each cycle segment, the order and number of cycle segments, the amount of water used, and the temperature of the water.
The intent of the various wash programs is to remove food soils and debris from the dishware therein. In doing so, however, various other factors such as, for example, water consumption, energy consumption, and the duration of the wash cycle must be considered in determining the effectiveness of a particular wash program. These “other” factors of power consumption, water consumption, etc., may be adversely affected by draining and re-filling the dishwasher appliance (i.e., increased water usage, as well as energy usage due to the operation of the pump used for draining the water). As such, one area of interest is effective filtration of the water used in the various cycle segments, since the water used for washing the dishware is often re-circulated over the dishware. Effective filtration leads to a more effective wash program since fewer food soils are re-circulated back over the dishware. In addition, less draining and re-filling conserves water and energy, and may help to reduce the overall duration of the wash cycle. As such, it would be desirable to optimize wash programs in a dishwasher so as to provide sufficient flexibility to match individual programs to the nature of the dishware being washed, as well as the magnitude and condition of the food soils thereon, while providing an effective wash cycle which conserves or optimizes resources.
In some instances, the wash cycle may involve monitoring the turbidity of the wash water, for example, between particular cycle segments. As such, the dishwasher generally completes a cycle segment before comparing the turbidity of the wash water to a predetermined threshold and selecting an appropriate cycle response (i.e., if the wash water is too “dirty” (high turbidity), then may drain and re-fill the wash water, and/or clean the filtration system). However, such progress to the end a particular cycle segment before determining the turbidity thereof, may undesirably cause the above-threshold wash water to be re-circulated back onto the dishware, while also taxing the filtration system. In addition, further energy, water, and time may be required to effectively clean the dishware. Also, continuing the cycle segment to the end thereof, even though the turbidity of the wash water may be above the threshold, may result in a higher energy consumption for the dishwasher to complete that cycle segment.
Thus, there exists a need for an apparatus and/or method for monitoring and/or sensing various conditions of a dishwasher or other washing appliance, and adjusting and optimizing the parameters of a selected wash program in response thereto.